Are the Warriors Done without Durant?
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Last Night Kevin Durant got injured in game vs. Wizards in 1st quarter when teammate ZaZa Puchulia fell on Durant leg. Durant did not return to game as Warriors lost game 112-108. Reports this morning says Durant has MCL sprain and is out at least 4-6 weeks, but other reports say Durant may miss season including playoffs. The biggest question in the league now is: Can Warriors win championship without Durant?
Warriors without Durant last season won 73 games and came 2 to 3 possessions away from winning back to back. This year Warriors team is drastically different. With the addition of Durant, the warriors bench is not as deep as it was last year. Players such as Speights, Barbosa, Bogut, Barnes are no longer with Warriors as they added energy, space, scoring, passing, and most importantly rest for Curry and Klay Thompson. While I expect Golden state to finish with 1 seed in West without Durant, the margin of error for Warriors without Durant is very slim now. Teams like the Spurs, Cavs, who are loaded with depth and can go 10, 11 deep in playoffs I feel can give Warriors a real scare in playoffs and possibly upset or win championship without presence of Durant.
Durant possibly one of the biggest free agent signings ever, is vital to the trilogy of a Cavs vs. Warriors NBA Finals matchup. Cavs have sign Deron Williams and Andrew Bogut off waivers preparing to match up for the heavy loaded Warriors team. Without Durant, the edge goes to Cavs to be favorites to win title in my opinion. I feel the Warriors without Durant can get thru 1st and 2nd rounds of playoffs, but Western Conference Finals if they play Spurs would be a flip of a coin series. Warriors did sign veteran Matt Barnes today, although definitely no Durant, a veteran savvy player thats defines tough is always needed for a deep playoff run.
?It will be interesting to see which lineups Coach Steve Kerr uses without Durant and if style of play changes without Durant in lineup. Still a great team to watch, the epic finals matchup vs Cavs which seems that everyone been waiting on, may not happen. I expect Steph Curry to play like a MVP rest of season but the loss of Durant is major with the lack of depth the Warriors do not have this season. Lets pray for a speedy recovery for Durant so we can see the trilogy of the century for basketball come June.